A 15-day-old baby girl was discovered with 100 rat bites in a blood-soaked crib. The parents of the newborn infant are teen couple Erica Shryock, 19, and Charles Elliott, 18. The couple was charged with child endangerment after the five-pound baby severely suffered from 100 rat bites.
Reports say that the baby's skull was even visible through the wound. Both Shryock and Elliott were charged with first-degree child endangerment.
"Detectives told Erica that [the baby] would have had to been screaming for a while due to the amount of bites. Erica stated that she knew there were rats in the house, but admitted that neither she or Charles did anything to address the rodent issue," the police said in a statement.
The police were called upon last Sunday, May 14, 11:30 a.m., at the Magnolia Regional Medical Center about the case of a baby with 100 rat bites.
After conducting examinations, authorities discovered that the baby suffered from about 75 to 100 rat bites all over her body including her fingers, arms, hands and face. However, the medical report cited that the worse injury is on the baby's forehead that exposed part of her skull.
Shyrock revealed to the police that the baby girl was placed in the bassinet at 5:30 a.m. next to their bed; the baby started crying two hours later. Elliott, the baby's teen dad, said that he even saw bloody rat footprint in the crib.
In the report, the police said that the young parents were aware of the rat infestation in the house but failed to address the problem. Despite the charges, the baby's grandmother revealed that Elliott is scared to lose custody of his daughter. However, it was established that Elliott did not immediately bring the baby to the hospital as instructed by his mother.
The baby already underwent reconstructive surgery to close the injury on the head that exposed her skull due to 100 rate bites. Meanwhile, a report from Arkansas Children's Hospital said the baby suffered from severe skin destruction due to rat feeding.
Teenage parents Shyrock and Elliott are currently detained at the Columbia County Justice and Detention Facility.